Temporal and spatial variation of the human microbiota during pregnancy

Abstract

Despite the critical role of the human microbiota in health, our understanding of microbiota compositional dynamics during and after pregnancy is incomplete. We conducted a case-control study of 49 pregnant women, 15 of whom delivered preterm. From 40 of these women, we analyzed bacterial taxonomic composition of 3,767 specimens collected prospectively and weekly during gestation and monthly after delivery from the vagina, distal gut, saliva, and tooth/ gum. Linear mixed-effects modeling, medoid-based clustering, and Markov chain modeling were used to analyze community temporal trends, community structure, and vaginal community state transitions. Microbiota community taxonomic composition and diversity remained remarkably stable at all four body sites during pregnancy (P > 0.05 for trends over time). Prevalence of a Lactobacillus-poor vaginal community state type (CST 4) was inversely correlated with gestational age at delivery (P = 0.0039). Risk for preterm birth was more pronounced for subjects with CST 4 accompanied by elevated Gardnerella or Ureaplasma abundances. This finding was validated with a set of 246 vaginal specimens from nine women (four of whom delivered preterm). Most women experienced a postdelivery disturbance in the vaginal community characterized by a decrease in Lactobacillus species and an increase in diverse anaerobes such as Peptoniphilus, Prevotella, and Anaerococcus species. This disturbance was unrelated to gestational age at delivery and persisted for up to 1 y. These findings have important implications for predicting premature labor, a major global health problem, and for understanding the potential impact of a persistent, altered postpartum microbiota on maternal health, including outcomes of pregnancies following short interpregnancy intervals.16S rRNA gene | pregnancy | preterm birth | microbiome | premature labor

The Human Microbiome during Bacterial Vaginosis

“…G. vaginalis was also one of the six dominant species identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing in a microbiota community type distinguished by higher cervicovaginal levels of IL-1␣, IL-␤, IL-8, TNF-␣, IFN-␥, and IL-10 in young South Africans at risk of HIV (75). A recent 16S rRNA gene analysis confirmed that a high abundance of Gardnerella in particular, combined with a low abundance of Lactobacillus, may contribute to the increased risk of preterm birth (76). Thus, strong evidence supports the role of G. vaginalis in modifying host immunity and BV pathogenesis.…”

The Human Ureaplasma Species as Causative Agents of Chorioamnionitis

“…in the female lower genital tract may be a risk factor for chorioamnionitis and adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as preterm birth (179)(180)(181)(182)(183)(184). A prospective study of 2,471 women attending an antenatal clinic demonstrated that Ureaplasma spp.…”

The oral cavity microbiota: between health, oral disease, and cancers of the aerodigestive tract

“…Other such illnesses include gastrointestinal cancer (Meurman and Grönroos 2010), breast cancer (Laidi et al 2016), cirrhosis (Bajaj et al 2015), and diabetes (Maruyama et al 2007;Deshpande et al 2010;Farag and Gaballa 2011). More recently, links with pregnancy (Digiulio et al 2015), the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (Kistler et al 2015), and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) have also been described (Zheng et al 2015).…”